City of Edmundston

Development

Participatory budget

The City of Edmundston is launching the 2023 edition of the participatory budget.

Participatory budgeting is a democratic process whereby the population decides how to invest a portion of a public budget. It can take different forms at different scales: it's a process that adapts to the realities of communities. Hundreds of towns and cities around the world are conducting participatory budgeting processes, with thousands of people proposing projects that enrich their living environment: public squares, community gardens, sports facilities, and any other projects that are significant to them.

Project eligibility criteria

To be eligible, a Category 1 project must

Be an investment in infrastructure (permanent installation) or equipment (may be relocated)
Be carried out on land or property belonging to the City of Edmundston and have a clearly identified location on municipal property
Transferred to the City without any rights or compensation
Have a useful life of at least five years
Meet the needs of the community, so the project cannot serve private interests or be reserved for a single group or association of people
Be carried out with a maximum budget of $20,000, funded by the City of Edmundston
Submitted to the City of Edmundston using the form provided for this purpose, before the end of the project submission period
Completed during the current year, summer 2023

To be eligible, Category 2 projects must

Be an investment on a site with existing infrastructure belonging to the City of Edmundston (permanent installation) or equipment (may be relocated); on land or property belonging to a private owner.
Transferred to the City without any rights or remuneration
Have a useful life of at least five years
Meet the needs of the community, i.e. the project cannot serve private interests or be reserved for a single group or association of people
Be carried out with a maximum budget of $20,000, funded by the City of Edmundston
Submitted to the City of Edmundston using the form provided for this purpose, before the end of the project submission period
Completed during the current year, summer 2023

The project will be deemed inadmissible if:

It contains elements of a discriminatory, defamatory or religious nature
It involves recurring operating or human resources costs in excess of 5%, unless approved by the participatory budget committee
It requires the acquisition of land, premises or buildings
It concerns a project already in progress
It harms, alters or represents a risk to the quality of existing infrastructure
Does not comply with the city's jurisdiction, laws, regulations or policies in force
Requires the agreement of a third party (right of way, assignment of a right, etc.).

To participate, you must:

Submit your project using the project submission form no later than June 23, 2023
Take part in the project improvement workshop (by appointment), if the steering committee invites you to do so
Modify your project to take account of any changes identified by the steering committee.
Participate in the announcement of the winning projects

Personal information and confidentiality

The personal information you provide when submitting your project will remain confidential and will not be used by the City of Edmundston for any purpose other than the participatory budget. Only your first and last names will be made public during the voting period and when the winning projects are announced.

Participatory budget steps

Step 1: Call for projects

To submit a project, you must:

Reside in Edmundston (with proof of residency)
Be 18 years of age or older
Be 12 years of age or older (if supported by an adult)
Projects must be supported by one or more citizens.

Submit a project:

Fill in the form or visit City Hall to obtain a paper version.

Don't have a computer or internet connection? No problem, computer stations are available at the Mgr-W.-J.-Conway Public Library.

For ethical reasons and to avoid any conflict of interest, City of Edmundston employees and municipal council members cannot act as promoters.

Step 2: Analysis and improvement

Each project is evaluated (scoring matrix) by the participatory budget committee, made up of public servants and elected officials. The promoters of the selected projects will be invited by the city to take part in one or more working meetings aimed at improving the project.

The evaluation consists of

Measuring the feasibility of the project
Estimating the costs of implementation and running costs
Assessing the project's potential to meet a community need and the city's policies

Step 3: Analysis and scoring of projects

To be eligible to vote, you must:

Reside in Edmundston
12 years of age or older

The score assigned to the projects will be determined according to the matrix below. The value of the municipal score will be 60% of the final score. The public vote will be worth 40% of the final score.

Step 4: Vote

Voting on the submitted projects will be completed by the citizens of the City of Edmundston and will have a value of 40% on the final score. Only one vote per device will be allowed. Citizens who do not have access to an Internet connection can vote online by visiting the library.

By submitting a project or voting for your favourite project, you are making a tangible contribution to the common good, for the benefit of your whole community!

You have a say in some of the city's public investments
Your ideas contribute to the development of your city and you have a positive impact on your community
You develop a better understanding of the realities and needs of your community, as well as how the municipal capital budget works.

The committee will be responsible for selecting the projects that meet the eligibility criteria and evaluating them according to the matrix above. The public will be responsible for voting for projects that add value to the community's quality of life and are sustainable and innovative.

Any votes submitted in duplicate will be automatically eliminated.

Each citizen must vote for two projects in order of preference for each category (category 1 - $20,000, category 2 - $20,000).

Step 5: Announcement of the winning projects

Following the announcement of the results, City Council will adopt a resolution confirming the implementation of the winning projects.

2023 timetable

Submission of projects: No later than June 23
Project analysis and cost evaluation period: June 23 to June 30
Project improvement workshop by invitation: June 30 to July 7
Announcement of finalist projects: July 10
Voting period: July 10 to 16
Announcement of selected projects: July 19
Completion of projects: December 1st